| | |
|
||
                   |
February 19, 2004, Edgewater, MD: In front of an overflow crowd at the Coral Reef Yacht Club in Miami, FL, Admiral Thomas H. Collins, Commandant of the United States Coast Guard (USCG) recently addressed the American Boat & Yacht Council (ABYC) membership body as the Keynote Speaker in celebration of ABYC's 50th Anniversary. Skip Burdon, President, ABYC stated, "We felt it was only fitting to have the Commandant of the United States Coast Guard right alongside our membership to celebrate and recognize ABYC on its fiftieth — particularly in light of the fact that the Coast Guard was instrumental in our formation a half a century ago." ABYC was formed on February 1, 1954, by members of the Motorboat and Yacht Advisory Panel of the U.S. Coast Guard's Merchant Marine Council in New York State, and since then, has continued a long and active partnership with the USCG on behalf of watercraft and boater safety. In addition to discussing highlights of the Boating Safety Program and the crucial role that ABYC has played in the Coast Guard's maritime strategy to reduce safety and security risks, the Commandant called for a more educated and prepared recreational boating public.
"To accomplish these initiatives, the Coast Guard will need help from its many partners and I know that we can rely on ABYC to be at the forefront," stated the Commandant. "Your [ABYC's] work in developing, analyzing and maintaining industry consensus standards has been invaluable in the continued improvement of safer boating," continued the Commandant. The Commandant further stated, "I challenge ABYC to expand the use of its standards to ensure the every boatbuilder selling boats in the U.S. is building boats in compliance with ABYC standards." Skip Burdon, President, ABYC stated, "This remark is a profound statement of support for ABYC -- it will help guide ABYC's course and its future development of consensus-based marine safety standards and supporting workforce educational initiatives for the next 50 years." "It also speaks volumes about why every boat and yacht manufacturer selling marine craft in the United States should support and participate in the NMMA Boat & Yacht Certification program, which now includes a majority of the ABYC standards," concluded Burdon. ABYC has been developing, writing and updating the safety standards for boat building and repair in the United States for 50 years. ABYC is actively involved with the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) as well as certification programs for marine technicians. These standards are available on CD-ROM and in printed form. To order the CD-ROM, you may call ABYC at (410) 956-1050 or by visiting the ABYC Web Site at www.abycinc.org.
* Photos of the event are available upon request.
|
|||||||
 |
||||||||
